Chilling tale of tragedy

A prisoner testifies how he nearly killed a trucker 11 years ago with a hunk of concrete

STOCKTON - On Dec. 4, 1997, Joshua Daniel, an angry 15-year-old, stood next to Interstate 5 at Smith Canal and threw a chunk of concrete that would forever change his life and that of Sacramento trucker Billie Collins.

STOCKTON - On Dec. 4, 1997, Joshua Daniel, an angry 15-year-old, stood next to Interstate 5 at Smith Canal and threw a chunk of concrete that would forever change his life and that of Sacramento trucker Billie Collins.

Struck in the forehead, Collins remains to this day at age 60 in a vegetative state. Daniel, now age 26, is a California prisoner, serving out a sentence for assault with a deadly weapon.

On Wednesday, Daniel took the witness stand wearing red prison clothes and shackles and quietly described how he chucked a 2 1/2-pound piece of concrete at the passing big rig.

"Much like a baseball player would throw a baseball - overhand," he said. "I would say, if I was a pitcher and I beaned someone, it would probably hurt them."

Daniel is a key witness in the civil trial launched by Collins' wife, Barbara. Her attorneys argue that Caltrans should have fenced off the roadway there and that Navistar International Corp. failed to build Collins' rig with a windshield that protected its driver.

Attorneys for the state and truck manufacturer have said in court that there was nothing their clients could have done to prevent Daniel from harming Collins.

Led in by a bailiff, Daniel quietly walked across the courtroom to the sound of his shackles. The 5-foot-9, 180-pound inmate wore a neatly trimmed beard and round glasses. He showed little expression on his face, other than a solemn look.

San Joaquin County Superior Court Judge Lauren Thomasson is overseeing the case argued by 11 attorneys before a full panel of 12 jurors and 12 alternates.

Answering questions first from Collins' attorney, Davey Turner, and then the defense lawyers, Daniel described much of what happened but said details escaped his memory more than 10 years later. He repeatedly said: "I can't clearly remember" or "I can't recall."

The morning of the tragedy, Daniel recalled wandering to the levee south of Smith Canal at Interstate 5, angry, in part, at his strict step-father. For about 10 or 15 minutes he said he picked up pieces of asphalt or concrete and threw them at three to five northbound vehicles.

He hit most of his targets, and the final throw squarely struck Collins 20 to 30 feet away, Daniel said. Turner asked what next happened to the big rig.

"It went out of eyesight," he said. "And I heard a large crash."

After pleading guilty, Daniel was sentenced to 12 years. He extended his sentence by two years for having a weapon in prison, his attorney Gregory Davenport said outside of court. He was brought down from the High Desert State Prison in Susanville to testify.

Collins' wife sat observing the trial. She said outside of court that the trial has thrust her again into an emotional roller coaster. She hadn't set eyes on Daniel for a decade since his criminal proceedings, she said. His demeanor appeared changed to her.

"I at least feel now that he has a little remorse," she said. "Maybe he's had time to think about it."

She broke down when asked to describe her husband, who is under constant care in a home and fed through a tube. She said he is blind and used to recognize her voice. Anymore, he's "not there," she said.